S/FIN/38  
 
1 December 2023  
(23-8196) Page: 1/2 
    
 
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON TRADE IN FINANCIAL SERVICES  
TO THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN SERVICES (2023)  
Since its previous Annual Report to the Council for Trade in Services1, the Committee on Trade in 
Financial Services held four formal meetings, on 7 December 2022, and 10 March, 15 June and 
2 October 2023.2  
During the period covered by this Report, the Committee addressed the following matters.  
1  FINANCIAL SERVICES: TRADE, INCLUSION AND ACCESSIBILITY  
1.1.  At the meeting on 7 December 2 022, the Committee continued with the examination of the 
proposal presented by Canada at the previous meeting to organize a seminar on "Financial Services: 
Trade, Inclusion and Accessibility".3 The proposal was later co -sponsored by Chile, China, 
New Zealand, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Ukraine.4 The Committee agreed on a 
revised annotated agenda for the seminar at the March 2023 meeting and the event was finally held 
on 14  June 2023.5 Through presentations by academics, national experts, international officials and 
representatives of the private sector, a wide spectrum of topics was addressed, such as the status 
of financial inclusion throughout the world; the economic causes and effects of financial inclusion; 
the role of trade in financi al services – and trade policy on financial services – in promoting financial 
inclusion; the new business models and inclusive ways of providing financial services; the initiatives 
taken by the international community and by governments to foster financial  inclusion; the work 
programs of international organizations, such as the OECD, the World Bank and the Bank for 
International Settlements; the financial inclusion of women as a means to promote the 
empowerment of women and gender parity and the use of trad e policy, especially in financial 
services, to that end; the role of digital technology and of regulation in promoting financial inclusion.  
1.2.  At the meeting held on 15 June, the Chairperson reported on the issues addressed at the 
seminar and some Members sha red additional information on their national experiences relevant to 
the issues addressed in the event. Discussions at that meeting, as well as at the meeting of 
2 October, showed a clear interest among Members to follow up on the thematic seminar and focu s 
more specifically on (i) the digitalization of financial services and how digital technologies are being 
leveraged to promote access to financial services and advance financial inclusion domestically and 
worldwide, and (ii) how domestic regulatory framew orks have been adapted (or need to be adapted) 
to take advantage of digital technology in the context of financial inclusion policies. During the 
discussions, various Members suggested that these issues could be further explored through 
thematic sessions. Against that backdrop, at the meeting of 2 October, the Chairperson suggested 
that the Committee hold a dedicated discussion on Fintech and Financial Inclusion. Following the 
request made by Members at that meeting, the Chairperson subsequently circulated an informal 
note providing more details on his suggestion.6 The Committee agreed to continue discussing this 
issue at the following meeting.  
 
1 Document S/FIN/3 7, dated 7 December 2022.  
2 Reports of these meetings are contained in documents S/FIN/M/96 , S/FIN/M/97 , S/FIN/M/98  and  
S/FIN/M/99 , and should be read in conjunction with this report.  
3 Document JOB/SERV/CTFS/1 , dated 3 O ctober 2022.  
4 Document JOB/SERV/CTFS/1/Rev.1 , dated 19 December 2022, and JOB/SERV/CTFS/1/Rev.2 , dated 
13 February 2023.  
5 See the programme, presentations, and the Chair's summary at the seminar's webpage, available at 
https://www.wto.org/english/tratop _e/serv_e/serv_1406202310_e/serv_1406202310_e.htm . 
6 Document JOB/SERV/CTFS/7 , dated 10 N ovember 2023.  S/FIN/38  
 
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  2  PROPOSAL FOR A THEMATIC SEMINAR ON COST OF REMITTANCE SERVICES  
2.1.  At the meeting of 10 March 2023, India introduced a proposal to organize a seminar on the 
cost of remittance services.7 The proposal was successively co -sponsored by the Philippines and 
South Africa.8 
2.2.  The discussion showed that Members agreed on the importance of remittances and on the link 
with inclusion and accessibility, which was the subject of the thematic seminar held in June. The 
proposal had gathered broad support. However, a number of Members requested clarification on 
certain elements of the proposal and suggested that the proposed a genda be rebalanced and 
reoriented towards the areas of competence of the Committee.  
2.3.  Proponents circulated a revised proposal after the October meeting.9 As agreed at that meeting 
the Chairperson will hold further consultations on the basis of this text.  
3  FUTURE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE  
3.1.  At the meeting of 2 October 2023, prompted by the Chairperson, who had been in office since 
1 July 2023, Members exchanged views on some suggestions put forward by the Chairperson to 
reinvigorate the work of the Committee with in the framework of its terms of reference. While several 
Members showed themselves in favour of addressing other issues of interest, some recalled that the 
process towards the identification of specific issues for discussion should be Member -driven. The 
Committee agreed to continue this discussion at the following meeting.  
__________  
 
 
 
7 Document JOB/SERV/CTFS/2 , dated 7 March 2023.  
8 Documents JOB/SERV/CTFS/2/Rev.1 , dated 14 June 2023,  and Rev.2, dated 26 October 2023.  
9 Document JOB/SERV/CTFS/2/Rev. 2 , dated 26 October 2023.